Spring-bottom for bedsteads



R. HATCH Bed Bottom No. 18,988. Patented Dec. 29,1857.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ROYAL HATCH, OF STRAFFORD, VERMONT.

SPRING-BOTTOM FOR BEDSTEADS.

Specification of Letters Patent No. 18,968, dated December 29, 1857.

To all whom it may concern.'

Be it known that I, ROYAL HATCH, of Straiford, in the county of Orangeand State of Vermont, have invented a new and Improved Spring-Bottom forBedsteads; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear,and exact description of the same, reference being had to the annexeddrawings, making a part of this specification, in which- Figure l, is atransverse vertical section of my improvement; (m) in Fig. 2, showingthe plane of section. Fig. 2, is a plan or top view of the same. Fig. 3,is a detached view of one of the springs; the rod on which it is placedbeing bisected transversely.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the severalfigures.

My invention consists in attaching the ends and sides of a canvas orsacking bottom to the end and side rails of a bedstead by means ofspiral springs, arranged as will be hereinafter fully shown anddescribed, whereby a perfectly elastic or flexible bedbottom isobtained, and one that will yield or give, so as to conform to thedifferent positions of the body while resting upon it.

To enable those skilled in the art to fully understand and construct myinvention, I will proceed to describe it.

A, A, represent the side and B, B, the end rails of a bedstead of theusual con struction. To the inner side of each of the rails alongitudinal strip or ledge C, is attached by means of screws, or in anyother proper manner. To the ledges C, upright plates D are attached;these plates D are each perforated by a hole, and cylindrical rods E arefitted therein; a rod E extending the whole length of each rail of thebedstead, as plainly shown in Fig. 2. On each rod E, a series of spiralsprings F, are placed. The outer ends of these springs are secured tothe end and side rails A, B, of the bedstead; and the inner ends arebent in hook form, as shown clearly at (a) in Figs. 1 and 3.

G, represents a sacking bottom, which has eyes or thimbles (b) securedin it, all around its edges, and the hooks (a) are fitted in thethimbles The sacking-bottom G, therefore, is supported by the springs Fonly; and said springs should be suiiiciently stiff to support orsustain the sacking bottom, so that it will have a requisite degree offirmness, and still allow the necessary degree of elasticity orflexibility.

By the above improvement, a perfect elastic and flexible bed-bottom isobtained, and one that may be produced at a trifling cost, and one thatis not liable to get out of repair.

I am aware that many forms of elastic or spring bed-bottoms have beendevised. Many, however, possess only a partial degree of elasticity orflexibility; for instance, wooden bars have been placed longitudinallywith the bedstead and attached to springs arranged in various ways. Thisform of bottom is not perfectly elastic, or rather, these bottoms cannotbe termed flexible bottoms, because they will yield or give only in onedirection, and will not yield or give so as to conform perfectly to thevarious positions of the body.

My improved bed-bottom is perfectly elas- Y tic and fiexible, and willyield or give in either direction, because the sacking bottom isattached on all sides to the springs F. It is far superior to acombination of wooden and stiff or rigid bars and springs. Such bottomscannot be made flexible, although they may be elastic; but elasticity isnot the only object to be obtained: iexibility is requisite to form aneasy and yielding bottom.

The springs F take the place of the cords commonly used to stretch thesacking bottom; said springs possess the strength of the cords forsupporting the sacking, and present the additional quality of freeelasticity.

The superiority of canvas or its equivalent pliable materials, as abed-bottom is well-known; its lightness, the ease with which it can betransported, and its uniformity of surface when in use renders it farmore desirable than rigid bars or any other substitute. But to the bestof my knowledge and belief, the canvas bottom has never before beenrendered elastic as a bedbottom by being stretched upon springs in themanner herein described.

There slats are used, it is indispensable that a bed of wool or othersubstance be interposed between the body of the person and the slats.But in my improvement, no addi- Stretching the seeking bottom G, upontional bed is required, since the surface of Springs F, all in themanner substantially as the canvas presents a smooth, agreeable, anddescribed.

elastic surface on Which to recline. ROYAL HATCH. 5 Having thusdescribed my invention, what Witnesses:

I claim as new, and desire to secure by Let- J AMES S. MOORE,

ters-Patent, is HENRY C. HATCH.

